(Image: CHS)
The Seattle City Council will hold its first of two public hearings on the 2027-2028 budget Tuesday afternoon. Get comfortable. It’s an epically long session:
The public hearing will begin with remote public comment at 1 p.m. Members of the public can register online to give remote public comment between 12 p.m. and 3 p.m. Everyone who signs up during that time period will be given the opportunity to speak.
The public hearing will then continue with in-person public comment at 5 p.m. In-person public commenters can sign up outside of Council Chambers starting at 4:30 p.m. The public hearing will conclude after everyone has had a chance to speak.
CHS reported here on Mayor Katie Wilson’s proposal which would wipe out an inherited $175 million deficit without tax increases or withdrawals from city reserves. The proposal would cut roughly $50 million annually in General Fund spending by eliminating 128 positions and aligning departmental budgets with historical costs, pairing these cuts with $50 million in shuffled funding — primarily leveraging JumpStart payroll tax revenues to cover core services and homelessness programs — and enabling the city, Wilson says, to project balanced budgets through 2030 without drawing on reserves.
Budget chair Dan Strauss next week will lead the process ad council members will be briefed by staff on policy considerations before officially proposing potential amendments to the mayor’s proposal.
District 3 representative Council President Joy Hollingsworth has signaled her support for continued police and anti-crime investments, joining a call for the mayor to strengthen her public safety plan. Hollingsworth is also expected to support smaller earmarks to support clean-up and Business Improvement Area organizing in Pike/Pine, activation and maintenance spending for Cal Anderson Park, and her continued work on social programs focused on food and nutrition, anti-displacement policy, and community resources against gun violence on Capitol Hill and in the Central District.
A second “all-day” public hearing is scheduled for November 5th.
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